Maharashtra Farmers Shift Highway Protest Following Court Order, Set for Talks with Chief Minister

Nagpur:

Former MLA Bachchu Kadu, who is spearheading a significant protest demanding farm loan waiver, announced Wednesday evening that protesters will relocate from the national highway to a nearby ground. He stated that the future direction of the protest will be determined after his meeting with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis scheduled for Thursday.

This decision followed the Bombay High Court's directive ordering protesters, who had blocked National Highway 44 near Nagpur city, to vacate the area by 6 pm. Ministers Pankaj Bhoyar and Ashish Jaiswal subsequently engaged in discussions with the demonstrators.

Minister Bhoyar informed protesters they were conveying Chief Minister's invitation for discussions in Mumbai.

Following extensive negotiations between ministers and protesting farmers led by Kadu, farmer leader Raju Shetti and others, Kadu informed both media and farmers that they would vacate the highway (also known as Nagpur-Wardha road) and relocate to a nearby ground. He added that the protest's next steps would be decided after Thursday's meeting with Chief Minister Fadnavis in Mumbai.

Earlier, responding to the High Court's order to vacate the protest site by 6 pm, Kadu, who leads the Prahar Janshakti Party and is a former state minister, had stated they would not disrespect the court's order but were prepared to face arrest.

Thousands of individuals, including farmers and Prahar Janshakti Party workers, had participated in the Maha Elgar Morcha and blocked the highway while demanding complete farm loan waiver.

The high court, taking suo motu notice of newspaper reports about a 20-kilometer traffic jam on the highway and public inconvenience, ruled that the protesters were violating citizens' fundamental right to free movement across the country.

Kadu emphasized that the protest had not concluded. He warned that if discussions with the government in Mumbai proved unproductive, they might organize a 'rail roko' (railway blockade) protest on October 31.

Chief Minister Fadnavis had earlier Wednesday morning appealed to Kadu to engage in dialogue with the government regarding farmers' issues rather than conducting protests that inconvenience the public and might be exploited by "vested interests".

Addressing the loan waiver demand, Fadnavis stated, "The state government has already established a committee to examine this issue. Our current priority is assisting farmers who have suffered losses due to heavy rainfall. We have never expressed opposition to farm loan waiver." Notably, farmers, particularly those in central Maharashtra, have experienced substantial losses due to unprecedented September rainfall.